by Steve Emery | September, 2018 | kindness
When I was in my late teens I worked in a factory just outside of Birmingham. I can clearly remember a cartoon one of my work mates had pinned on his locker. There were four captions, the first showed a boss yelling and wagging his finger at a worker. The next caption showed the worker yelling and finger wagging at his wife. The next showed his wife doing the same to her son, and the final one showed the son doing the same to a poor confused looking dog. I asked him why he had the cartoon pinned to his locker and he told me it was to remind him not to take any of his work issues home with him. What this cartoon illustrated so well is just how our emotions are transferred. One act of rudeness or aggression can have a devastating effect as it’s passed along the chain. There have even been times in history where one solitary act of aggression has led to riots and even murder somewhere down the line. It’s believed that each act will go through three degrees of separation, so it will affect people that the aggressor has never met and who presumably has no quarrel with. In modern times it doesn’t just stop there. With social media there is an opportunity to vent anger out publicly which can potentially be read by a thousand or more people, all getting angry at something they are witnessing. So, can the same thing happen with kindness? Passing on kindness According to research, there is also a ripple effect with kindness, but the difference...
by Julie Ostrow | September, 2018 | Julie Ostrow, kindness
It really isn’t that hard to be kind. Yet, I see people struggling to put a smile on their faces. I understand that everyone has struggles and sometimes they are experiencing grief, sadness, and a heaviness of weighted burden in their lives. What I want to say here is for those people who seem to be happy to make other people miserable: stop doing that. And, instead of judging them or trying to change the unhappy people, I will continue to focus on myself and my methods for being happy and for spreading happiness to others. Why be kind? For this simple reason: Being kind feels good Oh, and for another reason: It’s super easy. I like to think of my experiences when I travel because I see so many people. Traveling to and from all over the world. Either solo or within a group. On a business trip or on a family vacation. What I’ve observed in my hundreds of trips I’ve taken through the years (domestic and international trips) is that when I approach everyone and every situation with a smile and with excitement, I get positive vibes and treatment in return. I’m not saying that I am kind in order to get something in return The positivity and, many times, extra special treatment comes my way…simply because I was kind. I am never looking for a payback. I automatically get a payback with kindness and a smile. And, when I get a bonus of a special upgrade, an extra ounce of coffee, or someone else offering to put my carry-on in the overhead compartment, that’s just...
by Janette Kirk-Willis | June, 2018 | Janette Kirk-Willis, kindness, Uncategorized
Being kind makes us feel great. There is a mountain of research that outlines the benefits of performing acts of kindness. It improves our physical as well as our psychological health, so with anxiety and depression at an all-time high could kindness be the perfect antidote? Escaping the depressing news cycle Not long ago I found myself checking the BBC news website before I got out of bed in the morning. This is unusual for me and when I examined it more closely I realized that I was checking to make sure that the world hadn’t ended…. We seem to currently be in a situation where global political ‘leaders’ engage in ‘name calling’ with each other. Remember the US, North Korean inflammatory “Rocket Man / You’re old and fat” episode? Or the seemingly constant bickering about whether we’re still friends with our European neighbours. Politicians continually undermine each other. On a daily basis. What kind of example is it for a leader to set? Is this really how we expected our chosen leaders to treat people? …Lacking isn’t it? It’s not just the politicians either, leaders in the Corporate world are often equally inept with poor examples from the City and recently from charities too, with the very people who were paid to protect and take care of the vulnerable ending up taking advantage of them. Is kindness perceived as weakness? What happens when someone in power shows kindness? How are they perceived? Are they more likely to be taken advantage of? Is it necessary to be unkind to achieve? In organisations, leaders who practice self-awareness and managing their...
by Steve Emery | May, 2018 | kindness, Uncategorized
We have all most likely seen newsfeeds, and clips on social media of people performing random acts of kindness. The definition of a random act of kindness or RAOK is a selfless act performed by kind people to either help or cheer up a random stranger for no other reason than to make them happier. So, what makes a random act of kindness so special and why is it good for us? Kindness produces Serotonin Serotonin is the chemical the brain produces to help regulate mood, social behaviour, appetite and digestion, sleep, memory and sexual desire and function. Basically, a RAOK makes you simply feel good, it boosts your body’s healing system and acts as an anti-depressant. A lack of serotonin is widely believed to be the main cause of a lot of depression and anxiety related illnesses, so a boost of Serotonin is always welcome. But not only does a RAOK produce serotonin in the giver, it also boosts Serotonin levels in the receiver and all those people who witness it whether at the scene or through a video on social media. Kindness causes a ripple effect. The RAOK doesn’t just stop with the people who witness it. Studies have shown that someone who witnesses a RAOK is much more likely to perform one themselves and will commonly go through three degrees of separation. This means that friends and family will also benefit from the good mood felt through witnessing a kind act. Kindness has been shown to build stronger family and community ties as receiving a RAOK often inspires people to replicate this act. Kindness has been...
